Sylvie and the songman

the long version

"Sylvie Bartram's beloved dog, Mr. Jackson, has lost his bark. The birds have stopped singing. And in the growing silence, her dad has disappeared. Determined to find him, Sylvie and her best friend, kite-flying, tone deaf George, are drawn into the nightmare world of the Songman, a world haunted by the terrifying Woodpecker Man in his swan-powered balloon, a world where nothing can sing and no one can speak. Only Sylvie can save the earth from its terrible voiceless fate."--Dust jacket.